It can be assumed that the term IQ isn’t normally associated with the majority of beefcake running around an AFL ground, either now or in past decades.

Be that as it may, but if you’re a fan you soon realise there are some players that create or instigate team passages of play simply because they can.

These geniuses aren’t necessarily found at the end of a chain of kicks and handballs which might eventuate in a goal. These guys are mostly at the start and through a combination of natural ability and thousands of hours practice can produce moments so exquisite they are considered works of art.

They aren’t necessarily the best or flashiest player in their time, in fact for many of them you would need a replay to see the subtlety of their execution and how it led to a positive outcome for their team.

Here are my favourites by club over my sixty years.

GWS – Toby Greene. An extraordinarily gifted thinker prone to irrational violence. Greene is almost impossible to categorise. He plays a mid-size forward role which is arguably the most difficult position on the ground and has made it his own in the AFL.

Hawthorn – Not unlike Greg Williams, Sam Mitchell was slow, lacked endurance but made up for all of that stuff that recruiters look for by possessing incredible peripheral vision and speed of hands and feet.

Geelong – Apologies to the late Paul Couch and Gary Hocking but it will always be Joel Selwood for me. The complete selfless leader, he arrived and finished with a bang. His first six or seven years were electrifying. I just cant remember him missing a target to set off a chain.

St Kilda – For my beloved Saints there’s only one. Robert Harvey was a running machine that enabled him to escape opponents and set up hundreds of goals especially for Tony Lockett.

West Coast Eagles – Dean Kemp was my mum’s favourite player and it was hard to argue with her. He often ignited his mates on the wings, Matera and Mainwaring and was a beautiful kick on both sides.

Brisbane – Apologies to Lachie Neale but the consummate centreman possibly ever, was  Simon Black. There was a certain regal quality about the way he brought his team mates into the game.

Collingwood – Nick Daicos may be the flavour of this next decade but how could you ever leave Scott Pendlebury out of any conversation when it comes to sheer class? He’s slowing up a little now but for about a decade his every movement through the midfield was ‘Matrix-like’. Everything including his opponents suddenly slowed up. Like his contemporaries Bontempelli and Petracca, his elite basketball background meant his hands have always been squeaky clean.

Footscray – Apologies to  Scott West but Marcus Bontempelli has always played beyond his years. Composed and more than capable on both sides he knows when to draw tackles and distribute like no other, maybe Cripps at his best. An unbelievably consistent and relied upon member of the Bulldogs.

Port Power – It’s no secret I have a man crush for Travis Boak but Zac Butters has become the player I predicted he would become a couple of years ago. The slightly built midfielder is smart, tough and highly skilled.

Richmond – I loved Dale Weightman when I was younger but the one Tigers player who always terrorised the Saints when he played was Shane ‘Tich’ Edwards. He was seemingly dismissed as a threat by opposition coaches who perhaps thought he was too small to be of any concern. He was a brilliant player! You could guarantee he was the impetus to most forward thrusts in Richmond’s recent 3-peat era. A fantastic decision maker with great skills.

North Melbourne – Having grown up watching Barry Cable in WA then at North he would be my pick if not for recent historical issues that have come to light. Without a doubt my favourite player growing up was Malcolm Blight so I’ll end it there.

Melbourne – Clayton Oliver is a freak. An aerobic monster and contested ball animal. When he’s not playing, it’s a different Demons. His kicking still needs work but sometimes I think it’s simply fatigue from how hard he runs.

Fremantle – Paul Hasleby was your stereotypical 70’s or 80’s looking centreman. Chunky, a Collingwood six footer and slow. All of that didn’t matter with hands as clean as Hasleby’s and the ability to read the play like him. A natural centreman and enormous accumulator of the footy.

Adelaide – I loved Andrew McCleod but the imbecile Andrew Jarman was my favourite. His brother may have received more accolades and so he should but this clown prince of The Crows was no schmuck. Highly skilled on both sides and one of the smartest players I’ve ever seen.

Essendon – I was a big fan of Mark Mecuri but how could you go past James Hird? I liken The Bont’s influence on the Dogs to that of Hird’s on The Bombers. Could play anywhere and just possessed that indescribable magic that separates these players from the rest.

Gold Coast – Gary Ablett Junior….any questions? 🙂

Carlton & Sydney – Greg Williams. My favourite centreman of all time. Rejected twice by Carlton before being taken by Geelong then Sydney where he won his first Brownlow then to an apologetic Carlton where he won his second Brownlow, ‘Diesel’ was the best.

As a hack VFA centreman I idolised him and when former Carlton wingman Tim Rieniets came to my club Werribee, I interrogated him around what Diesel did at training. Because his knees were both ‘shot’, Williams was relegated to a completely different training regime which Tim shared with me. I practiced it religiously after training and it definitely helped.

Williams’s handballing was sublime. He had a head like an owl, wise and it could swivel in any direction. He saw opportunities like no one else I’d seen. There was one handball I saw him do at Princes Park one day that took my breath away and I promise I won’t exaggerate the sheer beauty of this thing!

Williams was joined at Carlton by his old Sydney mate Barry Mitchell who was on the wing. I don’t remember the opposing team but Diesel suddenly found himself with a bobbling ground ball to negotiate in the centre circle. Three opponents surged at him frothing at the opportunity to smash the little champ, when in one swoop he picked up the ball and without looking hit a 30m handball with his left hand to Mitchell on the wing who didn’t have to break stride.

He always came across as intense. He had little tolerance for taggers and gave as good as he got. Perhaps the best example of his single mindedness was when he delivered his speech after accepting the second Brownlow.

“Id like to thank Parkin, Kernahan, Silvagni, Dean and Bradley.” All surnames. It was like he was reading out the teams on Thursday night!

‘Diesel’ was a true artist. Like all the aforementioned players they possess a uniqueness that can often be overlooked by recruiters chasing affirmations on a spreadsheet. As footy becomes more sanitised I hope we see more natural thinkers. Who cares if they’re a bit slow when their thinking is two steps ahead of everyone else.